Friday, March 12, 2010

What to Do This Weekend: Cage the Elephant

Like Kings of Leon, Kentucky rockers Cage the Elephant grew up in a stiflingly religious Southern household where secular music was a big no-no. And like the Kings, Cage’s siblings (singer Matt Shultz and his guitar-playing brother Brad) used to sneak listens to classic-rock records when their parents weren’t looking. But where the Followills play by traditional rock rules on the Kings’ albums, the Shultzes lead Cage into several mixed genres on their self-titled debut album from last year. Not all of it works: There’s some lazy, alt-rock-style rapping on a few cuts, and the album’s big breakout song, “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,” borrows Beck’s slide-guitar run from “Loser.” But the quintet pounds away so determinedly, something’s bound to click (like the mumbling and bluesy “Back Against the Wall”). Cage have been on the road for a year now, so their road muscles should be pretty firm by the time they play House of Blues (308 Euclid Ave., 216.523.2583, houseofblues.com) at 8 p.m. Saturday. As Tall as Lions and Morning Teleportation open. Tickets: $15 in advance, $18 day of show. —Michael Gallucci (follow me on Twitter @mgallucci)